Lions looking to get their licks in the City of Champions

The BC Lions are set to invade the Alberta Capital looking to avenge a week four loss. In that contest the Esks RB Hugh Charles ran wild torching the lions D for 118 yards. Since then Adam Bighill and the rest of the BC defence have played lights out, particularly in the run game.

Last week Edmonton was boat-raced by Hamilton losing 51 to 8. Even in the loss, QB Kerry Joseph tossed for 290 yards, this week he won’t even make the lineup as the confusing QB carousel in Edmonton continues.

Time to digest the Top Shelf Keys to this weeks match-up.

Seeds of Doubt

The one problem with playing a team that just got taken to the wood-shed is that they can come out pissed off full of fire and vengeance or they can come out extra cautious not wanting to get burned early. If Edmonton comes out angry they will tend to over-pursue and be susceptible to any Lions misdirection plays.

If the Esks come out cautious, a quick score by BC will have them thinking they’re on a sinking ship again.

One Man Wrecking Crew

Edmonton may be ranked last in theCFL West Division but it’s not because of lack of defensive effort. Especially with defensive strength up the middle, the hammer of this D is Linebacker JC Sherritt. The runaway favourite for defensive player of the year, Sherritt leads the CFL with 93 tackles, 30 more than the men who trail him.

If BC wants to have any success moving the football Jacques Chapdelaine should employ many outside runs or short passes to the sidelines.

Gold Rush

Edmonton has the luxury of rolling out 3 top tier Running Backs and will hope to employ them in an attempt to keep the Lions Offense off the field. Problem is, the Lions have been very successful stopping the run this year, especially against the league’s top runners.

Against Calgary, the Leos held John Cornish to -1 yard and against Saskatchewan they held Kory Sheets to 28 yards.

Triple Threat

Coming off a week where we he earned Offensive Player of the Week, Lions QB Travis Lulayshould have another high stats day against these Eskimos. Not only will he be able to pass effectively, Lulay could also run against this D as most of his running plays are designed to find the sidelines.

One more weapon? Lions WR Kierrie Johnson will be healthy enough to start

And the one big thing I keep noticing about Travis, is when the Lions run the slot reverse, #14 loves getting dirty by leading the charge around the corner and throwing the big block.

Team Player.

Tick Tock

Grey Cup, November 27th, 2011. 300 days later Solomon Elimimian will play his next meaningful football game. Even if he only gets in on Special Teams he will definitely make an impact.

After vacating his starting spot in BC and subsequently being released by 2 NFL teams, Elimimian will be looking to explode back onto the CFL scene.

Quick Shots

BC Lions teammatesShawn Gore and Tim Brown also earned weekly honours. Gore was named Top Canadian and Brown was selected as Special Teams player of the week.

Edmonton has named Steven Jyles as their starting QB.

Last time these teams met was the Khalif Mitchell Simeon Rottier incident. Hopefully Mitchell has learned his lesson, and tempers remain calm.

Lions WR Kierrie Johnson will be healthy enough to start. The first time since fracturing his arm.

Weather is predicted to be warm and sunny and not a factor.

Last Call

As things start to settle out in the CFL, the Lions sit relatively comfortably atop the West division standings with a slew of divisional games on the horizon.

A victory in Edmonton and the Lions will almost certainly ease into the playoffs, but if week 4 was any indication, you can’t take the Eskimos lightly.

Time to make hay while the sun shines and generate a solid effort before the weather wreaks havoc on the CFL schedule.